Theory

A number of articles, so-called concepts, are listed below which are linked to ARL – Action Reflection Learning® – and which are written within the framework of MiL Institute’s practical and research activity.

Change at Work - The MOD Concept

The article Managing Operations Development describes a developmental effort, which was carried out in Chassis & Powertrain in Volvo Car Corporation in 2000/2001. The effort combined leader, group and organisation development in a cost efficient way. “Off site” gatherings were held to a minimum and instead the participants worked in their existing work groups in the operational activity, which gave immediate operational results. The authors describe the new role that HR took in a close and coaching cooperation with team managers.

In an organisational reality, filled with unpredictable, complex and vaguely defined situations, the leader it constantly faced with the choice of one action plan over another. In the following article, Rennemo’s point is that MiL should work intensively with creating for the participants the awareness about how the different frameworks and perspectives that guide their actions, all comes with certain emphasis and limitations that automatically open some actions alternatives while closing others. Based on a concrete case, misunderstanding and conflicts are linked back to two totally different approaches to reality. Rennemo highlights how, by acknowledging the differences between these perceptions of reality, one can further the participants’ ability to handle complexity and change in global companies and organisations.

Mats Alvesson gives an in-depth description of concepts as interpretation, reflection and theory and touches among other things the ambivalence to reflection that can exist with many leaders that reward action and quick decisions. The author advocates an understanding of reflection as a mental attitude, an approach to oneself and the world around. He call to an awareness of the theories and interpretations that rule our actions and shows how reflection is a way to free oneself and open up for new ways of interpreting and acting in everyday life.

Improved Business through Personal Development - A leadership programme with an unusual starting point

This article gives an in-depth and detailed description of a leadership development programme in Nordea Savings and Wealth Management 2006/2007. The somewhat unusual starting point is a clear focus in the leaders’ personal development, for instance in regards to self awareness, emotional intelligence and leader identity (instead of being a specialist) The goal was among other things to thereby ensure the organisation’s collective leadership capacity to implement strategy as well as to handle new challenges in form of more customers and employees.

What is learning to you? A theoretical orientation to waken thoughts about practice

This is a text that especially aimed at MiL’s own coaches, but that can also be of interest to everyone who works with organisational learning and development or to those who want to understand more about ARL. To create awareness and ownership of the assumptions that govern the practice of the learning coach, and that is the base for interventions and design, ARL is compared to both Transformative Learning and to social-constructivist theories about organisational learning.

In Swedish. Steen, J. (2009). What is learning to you? A theoretical orientation to waken thoughts about practice. MiL Concepts 6/2009.

Leading a MiL programme

The reader is taken behind the scenes of preparation, structuring and role division in the construction of MiL’s open programmes. The article foremost gives a rich description of the programme manager’s assignment and prescribed approach, but also the relationship to the programme staff and their function during the programme.

Lennart Rohlin, founder and for over 30 years the MD of MiL Institute, gives us the in-depth tale of Action Reflection Learning®. Through his recounts we gain insight in the development of the ARL practice and theory and learn specifically about such cornerstones as Reflection and the Learning Coach.

By giving us the Story of Action Reflection Learning, he also points towards the future and how this learning philosophy is continually important and relevant in leadership and business development.

Important differences between soft and hard (as well as hard-soft) processes in an organisation are described. Especially highlighted is how the different processes require totally different approaches of the leader and the importance of adapting ones leadership to the specific needs. Hard processes are driven by seeking an optimal way to reach the goal and they start mainly from analytical methods with focus on planning and error correction in order to continuously improve and streamline the process. On the other hand, soft processes cannot be planed in detail in advance; instead they are built on continuous creative shaping. The task of the leader is then not to control the process, but to support it, to foster trust and to help the group handle (not to reduce) insecurity.

Lars Cederholm, MiL Senior Partner and recipient of the Dilworth Award for ”Outstanding professional achievement in the field of Executive Education and Action Learning” shares his reflections on the philosophical similarities between the cornerstones in Action Reflection Learning and Tibetan Buddhism.

Ernie Turner shows with the help of a concrete case, how he uses the ten ARL principles to coach a management group to vitalise, and implement, a new vision and strategy. In the case description the author shares both his own reflections as well as an account of how he works with tools such as “Open Space”, “The Fist Five” and “Post It Feedback”. Some general benchmarks about how you realise a strategy are also presented.

The article is an attempt to create a new understanding to MiL’s (LIM’s) learning philosophy ARL. Through examining what learning coaches actually do, as well as which assumptions rule their practice, the authors try to create an integrated map over ARL. They find a basic pragmatic approach where the best from different traditions about learning are combined in an exciting synthesis. Through translating the practitioners’ silent knowledge in explicit learning principles, basic elements and tools, the authors hope to contribute to further development of ARL in theory and practice.

Many similarities between ARL and cognitive methodology are highlighted in this article, which is foremost a presentation of cognitive concepts, working methods and models that can be of use for the learning coach.

As the title implies, the result of a MiL programme depends on more than what happens during the actual implementation phase – residentials, project groups, lectures etc. The article highlights the important work that takes place before the programme in the nomination and preparation phases, as well as during the closing and development phases. The distribution of responsibilities between contact person, participant and the participants’ manager is emphasised as well as the role and support of the contact person to solidify the effect in the home organisation.

Anders Boglind shares his reflections of five years of cooperation between VCC /Volvo Car Corporation) and MiL. In a personal and critical analysis of the joined work, the author asks a number of important and challenging questions regarding how factors and circumstances in his organization and in MiL (ARL) could have influenced the effect of the effort.

Victoria J. Marsick shares her long experience of Action Learning and ARL. Through a comparison of ARL with different forms of Action Learning, this article contributes to added understanding for the distinctiveness of ARL as well as its unique emphasis on the role of the learning coach to promote reflection and changed perspectives.

Inger Dreaby shares her experiences and reflections regarding what it takes to achieve genuine meetings in culturally and nationally heterogeneous groups. The title ”Breaking the codes” refers to the need to create awareness in the group of how interaction between participants is influenced by different cultural codes for how to behave. Through having an open, permissive and deliberate dialogue about how linguistic, cultural and national differences impact relations, meetings within the group are created so that the group can develop its own code, a new way of relating to one another.

Gestalt methodology is described by the author as a philosophy, an approach to the changes that fits within the ARL’s framework. What connects the two are among other things the emphasis on reflection and the position that efficient learning requires that one must be in contact with ones own needs; ones own experience here and now. As with ARL, the responsibility for change lies with the individual and /or the system while the task of the learning coach is to optimise the conditions for learning.

Catch management is an excellent example of how ARL® is a living practice that takes shape in the meeting between MiL Institute and the unique need and opportunities of the organisation. The method that is described is based on catching and seizing the learning occasion as they develop in the daily operational business. A tailored solution to a situation where a more normal MiL programme due to lack of time is not possible. The results show a time efficient development at an individual, group, leadership, organisational and business level.

The article describes the central role of the project in MiL programmes, where it not only is a tool for individual development but also stands for a real and urgent need that must be met. Depending on if project work is taking place within the frame of MiLs’ open or corporate assignments, the emphasis on individual or corporate development can vary and in some corporate programmes the result of the project corresponds to more than the cost of the programme; Earning while Learning. The conditions for a successful programme is described, among others things the importance that the task takes the group into unknown territory and beyond their core competency.

In the article it is describes how theatre is one of many roads to creativity, innovation and change in perspective. Rennemo recounts how the use of a theatre stage (to act themselves) proved to be an innovative tool to develop the way the participants think around, and approach challenges.

Future Leaders – an investment in Malmö city that involves the whole organisation

Based on interviews with former participants of Malmö city’s leadership development programme Future Leaders, the author tries to create understanding of the importance of the programme for the individual participants, but also in relation to the organisation’s overall investment in leadership. Special focus is put on how MiL’s learning philosophy ARL together with the specific needs of Malmö are realised in a specific programme design and finally in a concrete experience for the participant.

Thomas Sewerin gives a vivid description of the role of the learning coach in a MiL programme; of the different relations this person is a part of, as well as how he/she handles the most common pitfalls. The article especially focuses on the coach’s role to make possible a changed approach with the participants where the action is in balance with critical reflection.

Sewerin, T. (1997). The MiL Learning Coach. MiL Concepts 4/1997

Out of the box - MiL Partner Program in New York

The two authors take us on a journey to New York City that was made in 1996 within the then MiL International Partner Program 9. In this description they touch upon many different and always relevant approaches to give the participants a transforming experience – ”Out of the box”. Through reflection, art, exciting food culture, unexpected meetings, unknown environments and strange traditions etc, the participant is given a possibility to widen his perspective and horizons of understanding.

Cederholm, L. & Sewerin, T. (1996). Out of the box - MiL Partner Program in New York City. MiL Concept 2/1996.

Leadership – what is it that should be developed?

Jörgen Hansson identifies four main approaches to leadership and leader development – value theory, constructivism, structuralism and functionalism – which he leads back to the basic perception about the human nature. The author also argues that our view of the leader (as an actor or recipient) as well as how we regard the reality (objectively or subjectively) will decide both who and what shall be developed and what efforts one chooses to focus on in leadership development.

In Swedish. Hansson, J. (2003). Leadership – what is it that should be developed? In L. Rohlin et al. Leadership and Learning. (pp.53-82). Lund: MiL Publishers.

ARL, learning cycle and learning styles

ARL shares both many theoretical starting points and practical approaches with David Kolbs theories about ”experiential learning”. Kajsa Ek shows in this article a close connection between the “Actor model” of MiL and Kolb’s learning cycle, as well as how the practical application of Kolb’s learning styles is an important tool in MiL’s programmes. With the help of a learning style analysis one can envision how individuals differ in how they process information and act on information from the environment. The awareness of ones own approach gives the opportunity to develop ones own problem solving ability, among other things.

As a leader there is a constant need of being able to shift between different perspectives and widen your reference frames in order to deal with the quick changes and the complexity that challenge the organisations of today. Transformative Learning is a theory that describes the processes and the conditions that are required to develop a more including, tolerant and nuanced approach to reality. Sharon Lamm has researched the presence of Transformative Learning among the participants in The Volvo Truck Management Program 1190-1996. In this article she gives examples of how the participants’ leadership have transformed with the help of MiL’s learning philosophy ARL. Among other things a wider and more global perspective on leadership, a larger confidence and improved work relations, as well as a better balance between work and private life.